Machine for pressing fabrics



July 19, 1932. R. N. WEST MACHINE FOR PRESSING FABRICS March 4, 2 s t st I avwentozz Faber? JV: Wes f;

July 19, 1932. w s 1,868,184

MACHINE FOR PRESSING FABRICS- Filed March 4, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Patented July 19, 1932 1,868,184

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ROBERT N. WEST, OF MAPLEWOOD, NEW JERSEYMACHINE FOB PRESSING FABRICS Application filed March 4, 1931. Serial No.520,011.

- This invention relates to a combined press buck has a saddle 9 castintegral therewith and reciprocatory ironer, particularly adaptwhich isbolted to a corresponding saddle 10 ed for use in laundries and garmentpressing of a weight member 12 so as to tightly emestablishments and hasfor its principal obbrace a sleeve member loosely mounted on the jectsthe provision of a compact and inexpenbuck supporting shaft 11interconnecting the IS sive machine wherein the work is preferablyopposing spiders and centrally positioned held in a horizontal planethroughout the thereon between the opposing collars that ironingoperation and preferably a relative splined or otherwise rigidgy securedto said reciprocatory motion is provided between the shaft whereby saidbuck an oscillate freeheated chest and the buck, either when em- 1y onsaid shafts 11 and is continually main- 60 ploying the machine as apress or as a reciptained in a horizontal position during the rorocatonyironer, besides other advantages tation of the spiders. hereinafter setforth. Inthe'accompanying At the top of the machine is a heated chestdrawings, in which I have illustrated a pre- 13, which has hollow guardmembers 13 soferred embodiment of my improved mechacured thereto, thesame being spaced from 08 nism, and projecting across the ends of saidchest Figure 1 is a vertical section, partly in eleand serving toprevent contact between the vation of such mechanism; hands or arms ofan operator and the heated Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same chestduring the operation of the machine-,be-

2o mechanism; sides also serving to protect the face and body 7 Fig. 3is a detail elevation partly in secof the operator from heat radiatedfrom said tion of a modified form of counter balanced chest. The chestis provided with terminal buck; extensions or lugs 14 which areapertured to Fig. 4 is an end elevation, partly in section, receivepiston rods 15 that are carried by pisof a still further modification,wherein means tons reciprocating within air or steam cylinare providedfor transversely reciprocating ders 16, the latter having ports 17 and18 for the heated chest during the pressing of the the alternateadmission 0 fluid effecting the work, the chest being shown elevated;and vertical reciprocation of said piston rods.

' Fig. 5 is a similar but fragmentary. view of At the upper ends, saidpiston rods are so the same mechanism showing the chest lowthreaded toreceive nuts a and b respectively, 80

cred into contact with the buck. which, as shown, are so positioned onsaid Referring to the drawings and the conrods that if desired, in thosecases where apstruction shown therein, the reference nuplied steam orair pressure is not deemed necmeral 1 designates vertical end frameswhich essary, the weight of the chest may be carried I 85 are adapted tobe secured to a suitable base by the lower nuts 6 when the chest iselevated, or support and 2 are stay rods securing the but when the chestis in its lowermost posiopposing end frames together. Between said tionand in contact with a buck, the arms are 1. end plates is a rotarybuck-supporting memmoved to an intermediate position between ber, thesame comprising opposing spiders 3 said nuts, so that the chest rests bygravity 40 which are keyed to a shaft 4 that is mounted upon a buck andis not forcibly held thereon at its respective ends 'in bearin s in saidby the upper nuts a. Said chest, if steam frames 1. An index plate 5 isri-gi 1y secured heated, is rovided with an inlet and outlet to one endof said shaft 4, the same being conduit. 0 or the introduction of andwithapertured at intervals and spring-pressed indrawal of steam fromsaid chest in the well dex pins 6 are adapted to project into aperknownmanner, although obviously an electures -7, spaced at 90 intervalsaround said trically heated chest may be employed, if deindex late,whereby the difi'erent positions sired. i

of sai buck-supportin spiders can be ac- As shown, the rotation of thebucks into curately controlled and predetermined. their various indexedpositions is accom- Bucks 8 are carried by said'spiders. Each plishedmanually by means of handles (1 proof the fluid pressure medium from thepressure elevating cylinders 16.

In the construction shown in Fig. 3, the enlarged balancing weights 12,corresponding generally to the weights shown in Figs. 1 and i 2, areemployed, said weights having down- 8. Such movement is positively8.0001111 wardly projecting terminal lugs m that have flat bearingsurfaces, which while preferably of the same thickness as the thicknessof the weight from which they project, may obviously be greatly reducedin width since they are adapted to rest directly on the shaft 4 wheneach buck rides-into its uppermost position under the chest 13 andthereby the pressure imparted by the steam chest, when resting on suchbuck, is imparted directly to and borne in the first instance by said.shaft 4, thus relieving the shafts 11 from excessive central stresses.Obviously, however, as each buck leaves its uppermost position andcommences to rotate between the framesl, the In :17 slide off and out ofengagement with the shaft 4 and will not re-engage the same until suchbuck has .again attained its uppermost position beneath said chest 13.

In the construction shown in Figs. 4 and 5, I have provided means forcausing a slight reciprocatory movement of the chest across the buck ina direction parallel to the axis of the shafts 11, while the chest is incontact with the work carried by the bucks, and thereby an extremelysmooth sheen or finish is imparted to such work similar ,to thatobtained when ironing with friction ironers or by hand. This latterconstruction is essentially the same as that shown in Figs. 1 and 2,except that the lugs 14: are provided with slots 6, which admit of theslight transverse movement of the chest with respect to the bucksplished by means of impulses imparted to the opposite ends f of saidchest by'the'piston rods '20 that are carried by pistons within fluidpressure cylinders 21 which are rigidly mounted on the vertical pistonrods 15. As shown, when one of said piston rods 20 is projected to thelimit of its stroke, the other is retracted. Preferably the piston rods20 are continuously operated in opposite directions during the ironingoperation, irrespective of whether the heated chest is in an elevated orlowered position, as thereby the possible displacement of the workcarried by the bucks 8, as might otherwise occur, due to excessivefrictional engagement of the chest and buck, were the chest to be firstlowered into contact with the work prior to the commencement of thetransverse reciprocation of the chest, is avoided. In order tointerconnect the piston rods 15 so as to maintain the same inparallelism, I provide a stay bar 22 which is secured at its oppositeends to the top ends of said piston rods 15. Said fluid pressurecylinders 21 which are well known equipment for supplying fluid pressurefor various purposes, are provided with outlet ports gin the manner wellknown for the admission and escape of fluid during the respectivestrokes of the iston. s

I claim and desire to obtain by United States Letters Patent is 1 1. Ina pressing machine, the combination comprising a rotatable pad carryingsupport, a plurality of swivelled pads carried thereby, gravityresponsive means for continually maintaining said pads approximately ina horizontal position during the rotation of said support, a heatedchest associated with said'support and adapted to be brought intopressure engagement with an article to be pressed that is carried by apad when the latter is positioned immediately beneath said chest, andmeans for moving and locating a pad carrying an article to be pressedbeneath said chest.

2. In a pressing machine, the combination comprising a rotatable padcarrying support, a plurality of swivelled pads carried thereby, gravityresponsive means for continually maintaining said pads approximately ina horizontal position during the rotation of said support, a heatedchest associated with said support and adapted to be brought intopressure engagement with an article to be pressed that is carried byapad when the latter is positioned immediately beneath said chest, meansfor moving and locating a pad carrying an article to be pressed beneathsaid chest and means for effecting relative to and fro movement of thechest and a pad positioned immediately beneath the same.

3. The sub-combination comprising a rotatable pad carrying support, aplurality of pad carrying buck members" carried thereby and in swivelledrelation thereto and a weight weight members being normally. adapted torest upon said shaft when the buck member associated therewith is in itsuppermost osition and also to normally maintain such uck in asubstantiall horizontal position during the revolution 0 said buckcarrying support.

5. The combination comprising a frame, a rotatable buck carrying supportmounted thereon, a reciprocatable heated chest carried by said frame,buck members mounted on said support, means for efiectin the movement ofsaid chest towards and from one of said bucks when the latter ispositioned beneath the chest and means for effecting relative transversereciprocation of said chest and such buck. I I

6. In an ironing machine, the sub-combination comprising a rotatablebuck carrying support, bucks carried thereby, a vertically movableheated chest associated with saidcomprising a frame, a rotatable buckcarry-.

ing support mounted thereon, a plurality of bucks carried by saidsupport, a vertically reciprocatable heated chest carried by said frameand means including reciprocating pistons, mounted independent of saidbuck carrying support, for effecting lateral. reciprocation of said,chest when the latter is in pressure engagement with an article to bepressed which is carried by a buck when the same is positioned beneathsaid chest.

8. In a combination press and ironer, the combination comprising asupporting frame, a rotatable buck supporting member journaled in saidframe, aplurality of bucks mounted at spaced intervals around. theperiphery of said buck supporting member, means for maintaining saidbucks normally in a horizontal position, a steam chest supported onsaidframe and arranged to move vertically,- means for effecting such,movement of said chest including cylinder and piston members, means foreffecting the transverse reciprocation of said hast including cylinderand piston members, and said latter cylinders being adapted to movevertically with the movements of the said chest and means whereby theoperator of the machine can control the movements of said chest, asdesired.

9. In a pressing machine, the sub-combination comprising buck member anda chest member which latter is adapted to be heated and means to movethe chest member down- Wardly toward said buck member when the latter ispositioned immediate? beneath and in proximity thereto, meansfor causingpressure contact between said chest member and an article to be ironedwhen mounted on said buck and means for efi'ecting the relative to andfro motion of the buck and chest while the chest is in its lowermostposition and in contact with an article to be ironed positioned on saidbuck whereby frictional pressure ironin of 'such article can beaccomplished.

10. n a pressing machine, the sub-combination comprisin a rotatable buckcarrying support, a plura ity of bucks mounted peripherally thereon atspaced intervals from ing said bucks in a horizontal position during therotation of said support.

Signed at New York, in the city, county and State of New York, this 27thday of February, 1931. i

ROBERT N. WEST.

each other and means for normally maintain-

